Quotable Quote – Herbert Simon

What information consumes is rather obvious: it consumes the attention of the recipients. Hence, a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention and a need to allocate that attention efficiently among the overabundance of information sources that might consume it.
–Herbert Simon (Recipient of Nobel Memorial Prize)

Prince Caspian (the Movie) Delivers!

Editor’s Note: No matter what you may think of the C.S. Lewis‘ Narnia Chronicles, you have to see Prince Caspian! I took my family on opening night and everyone agreed it was great. Aside from one scene where my youngest had to close his eyes, the movie was by far a big achievement for the director, Andrew Adamson.

For those that have read the books, you’ll find there were many creative liberties taken. Don’t be dismayed — the essence of the story is true to form, while the screen play allows for audience members, who may have never had exposure to the books or previous film, to come up to speed.

By Tiffani Barnes

The second installment in The Chronicles of Narnia series has hit theaters, and it far exceeds its predecessor. The opening of Prince Caspian finds the Pevensie children at a train station traveling to school when they are suddenly transported from the platform to the coastline of Narnia. While only a year has pasted for the children, it has been more than 1300 years for Narnia. As Trumpkin (played by Peter Dinklage) later tells them, they “may find Narnia a more savage place than when [they] left.”

Prince Caspian is a darker movie than its predecessor with battle and fight scenes that resemble The Lord of the Rings. Director Andrew Adamson, however, chose to leave much of the blood and violence to the imagination, which allows the movie to remain suitable for younger viewers without robbing the story of its power. The character of Reepicheep, a sword-wielding mouse (voiced by Eddie Izzard), provided a great deal of comic relief, which helps to break up the more intense moments in the film.

The visual effects, writing and acting in Prince Caspian are all improved over The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Whereas in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe the children didn’t seem completely comfortable in their characters and so gave, at times, stilted and awkward performances, in Prince Caspian the young actors seem at home in their character’s skin.

The movie isn’t without its teachable moments either—themes of humility, patience, trust, and what can happen when greed and anger take over are found throughout the film. They are subtle and woven nicely into the fabric of the film, instead of sticking out like a flashing neon sign on a dark night.

The Bottom Line: Prince Caspian is worth the price of admission and would make a great outing for the whole family. At two hours and 20 minutes, the film might be a bit long for younger viewers, but it does a good job of holding the audience’s attention.

Related Links
- Movie Site
- C.S. Lewis (Wikipedia)
- Prince Caspian Review (Wired.com)

Quotable Quote - Cicero

A room without books is like a body without a soul.
- Cicero

5 Tips For Marketing Your Company In A Tech-Savvy World

By Phil Dunn, co-author of The 7 Essential Steps to Successful eBay Marketing

Your customers and prospects live in an information-driven world. They respond to the latest news, product developments, insights, tips and announcements, and they build relationships and purchase accordingly. By inserting yourself into the news stream and building targeted audiences online, you become part of the authority system and enhance your value to prospects and existing customers.

This sounds like a difficult thing to do, but it’s not. Follow the steps below to launch a few key initiatives that improve the quality and quantity of your leads, and increase your profits.

1. Establish authority and expertise online and in the press by automating a news gathering, posting and dissemination system for your specific niche.
Once you’ve established a few Web pages for company news, press releases and updates that are focused specifically on your niche audience, you need to automate its ongoing development. Use someone in your own company or outsource this updating process. The key is to keep the information fresh and dynamic. Subscribe to news alerts and RSS feeds. If the stories are copyrighted, have the staff summarize them and then link to the article/post. If not, you can re-post the content with a link to the attributed source in many cases. Direct prospects and customers to your news site/blog when articles specific to them materialize. As this system matures, you’ll be seen as a very focused expert in your particular business niche. Yet, all you’ve really done is employ the services of outside journalists and news gathering systems.

2. Create a link on your site for press inquiries, speaking engagements and interviews.
Make sure your blog or news micro-site has a highly visible link that shows journalists how to contact you and the process for scheduling interviews or event engagements. Use this page as a filter, so you can weed out time-consuming inquiries and busy-bodies that have little value to you. You can do this by writing a short description of your specific expertise and experience. You’ll also want to set up auto-responders for the email link you provide here.

3. Post to industry/niche-specific discussion boards.
Many of your blog posts and ideas can be posted as advice, instruction or step-by-step processes on discussion boards that focus on your particular technology, niche or business audience. Find the communities where your prospects congregate for information, and post.

4. Reference testimonials and case studies.
One of the best ways to establish authority is to have others do it for you. Use quoted testimonials from existing and past customers to toot your horn for you. Make sure they’re specific to you personally (if you’re a sales person) and to your specific expertise/niche. Make this a part of your ongoing business development process, and use them everywhere. Put them in the right side margin of your news site/blog. Use short testimonials as signatures for emails. Print them on the back of business cards and post cards that you send out.

5. Maintain trust by eliminating hype, sticking to facts and offering help.
When you’re writing copy for your sites and lead-generating materials, pay particular attention to your tone, style and choice of words. Keep it simple, clean and free of excess. No excess verbiage, adjectives, adverbs or claims. Don’t post rumors, half-truths or agenda-driven articles. If you’re truly offering value, then you don’t need to sugar coat it or pump it up with “marketing-speak.” You can be enthusiastic, of course. Emotion helps you sell in all of your selling-related endeavors. But, be aware that the emotions and feelings you’re looking to build—trust, confidence and respect—are best established with clarity, straight-forwardness and expertise. Most importantly, make sure every piece of information you pass along to your audience has genuine value for their particular needs and interests.

Source: Phil Dunn writes marketing materials and provides strategic consulting for Fortune 500 companies. Visit his Web site at www.qualitywriter.com

Weird Week In Review - Mar. 7

Your one stop review of all things from last week on WeirdGuy blog - Have fun!

Managing Your Online Reputation

Creative Parent Training

Leadership: Are You Making Heaven Or Hell On Earth?

10 Tips For Using Direct Mail To Boost Your Network

3 Tips For Niche Marketing Success

Related Links
- Weird Week In Review (Feb. 29)
- Weird Week In Review (Feb. 22)
- Weird Week In Review (Feb. 1)

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Creative Parent Training

By E. Brown

While at dinner last night with some friends the topic of children came up. I have two children and love them both dearly. The couple we were dining with are newly weds and have been thinking about having children. I wish I had seen these books prior to last night. From Wry Baby comes two hilarious parental training books: Safe Baby Pregnancy Tips and Safe Baby Handling Tips. The authors, David and Kelly Sopp, use creativity and illustration to equip expecting and new parents with the do’s and dont’s of child raising. Grab your own copies today and start learning!

Oh yes, remember - have fun!

New Children’s Book Idea - Creative Learning is Fun!

By E. Brown

Here is a project I have worked on for a children’s book. The book is for the Pre-K through Kindergarten markets. It covers character development while also teaching about fireflies. The idea spawned from a friend and fellow writer who saw her young children reading either books for entertainment or books to learn, but nothing that bridged both worlds in this younger demographic.

For the illustrations I used a mixed media approach. I liked the bold and textured style of Chinese painting techniques over watercolor backgrounds and color pencil. I used a few digital enhancements on some of the drawings, but for the most part I wanted the energy of the drawing and painting to come through.

The main character’s name is L.B., short for Lightening Bug. He narrates the story and gives background information about fireflies, glow worms, and lightening bugs. He talks about the special characteristics and talents of his species and how, like him, children have special abilities and talents too.

At this time no publisher has shown interest. We may look at creating an eBook of L.B.

All the focus group information shows this to be right on target. It is fun, entertaining, and captivates the attention of children while teaching them at the same time. I recently presented the book (in story board format) to my son’s kindergarten class. All the kids loved it! Too bad I didn’t have plush dolls of L.B. to give away afterward. Maybe some day, huh?

Let me know your thoughts about L.B. in the comment section below. Enjoy!

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Steve Jobs vs. Amazon’s Kindle

Is Steve out of touch with reality or is he onto the next “insanely great” idea? Read for yourself.

What do you think: Is reading books a fading past time or a changing paradigm?

clipped from www.nytimes.com Amazon’s first iteration of an electronic book reader is the Kindle. Introduced in November, it weighs about 10 ounces, holds more than 200 full-length books and can display newspapers, magazines and blogs. It uses E Ink technology, developed by the company of that name, that produces sharply defined text yet draws power only when a page is changed The Kindle is expensive — $399 — but it sold out in just six hours after its debut on Nov. 19. Since then, supplies have consistently lagged behind demand, and a waiting list remains in place. Steven P. Jobs, the chief executive of Apple, has nothing to fear from the Kindle. No one would regard it as competition for the iPod. Yet, when Mr. Jobs was asked two weeks ago at the Macworld Expo what he thought of the Kindle, he heaped scorn on the book industry. “It doesn’t matter how good or bad the product is; the fact is that people don’t read anymore,” he said. “Forty percent of the people in the U.S. read one book or less last year.”

Weird Week In Review - Jan. 25

Your one stop to review all this weeks articles on WeirdGuy. Have fun!

Quotable Quote - Benjamin Disraeli
The greatest good you can do for another is…. Read more

Creativity, Innovation, and Online Learning Reading List and Links
Here is the current pile I am reading through with links. Fun! Lot’s about innovation, creativity, online learning, and more. Read more

Creative eLearning - Teacher Tube
TeacherTube, launched in March 2007, has the goal of creating an online community for sharing instructional videos. It is a site geared to provide just in time (JIT) professional development. Read more

iPhone Air Guitar
Guitar frets on your iPhone! Great for parties and finding new ways to impress your geek friends. Read more

More Convertible Furniture (PIC)
I love the idea. It will not go with my current decor, but I love the creative idea! Read more

Quotable Quote - Thomas Gaines
It is good to dream, but it is better to dream and… Read more

6 Steps To Online Branding
Kirsten Dixson and William Arruda provide these six steps to creating and maintaining your personal online brand. Use the steps that make sense for you. Read more

Ant and the Grasshopper: Old Story, New Twist
Here is a creative, humorous, and poignant, twist on an old Aesop Fable. Enjoy! Read more

Related Links
- Weird Week In Review (Jan. 18)
- Weird Week In Review (Jan. 11)
- Weird Week In Review (Jan. 4)

Quotable Quote

It is good to dream, but it is better to dream and work. Faith is mighty, but action with faith is mightier. Desiring is helpful, but work and desire is invincible.

- Thomas R. Gaines

Quotable Quote

The greatest good you can do for another is not just to share your riches, but to reveal to him his own.

- Benjamin Disraeli

Weird Week In Review - Jan. 18

Your one stop to review all this weeks articles on WeirdGuy. Have fun!

How To Create A Small Business Continuity Plan
Business Continuity Plans are sometimes referred to as Disaster Recovery Plans (DRP) and the two have much in common. Read more

Do It Yourself Publishing
WordClay - This simple, yet highly sophisticated publishing tool was developed with you, the book-savvy author, in mind. Read more

New WALL•E Teaser From Pixar
If you have not seen it, the latest teaser from Pixar Animation Studios is out for its upcoming release. Read more

Social Networking Roundup
Of the social networks listed below, which one do you like best and why? Read more

10 Building Blocks To Engaging Presentations
What is it that sets good speakers apart from others? With these simple building blocks you can be on your way to giving engaging and meaningful presentations. Read more

Quotable Quote - Maya Angelou
There is not greater agony than… Read more

Free Tree Silhouettes (Vector Files)
Cool! Free downloads to use with your latest creative project. Thanks again, Bittbox. Read more

Guns, Eggs, and Fry Pans - Oh My! (PICS)
This is creative and hilarious! Every little boys wish for breakfast. I am sure Ted Nugent has a set. Read more

Bag Designs From The U.K. (PICS)
Fun, out of the box product design! These are very creative. Read more

7 Steps To Successful Freelancing
From Freelance Switch, Collis Ta’eed offers these seven steps to start you off into the ever growing world of freelancers and Web workers. Read more

10 Myths of Entrepreneurship
I got this from Guy Kawasaki’s blog. Good reality check! Read more

Quotable Quote - Harvey Cox
All human beings have an innate desire to… Read more

Are You Content In A Job, Career, or Vocation?
Today, employees are asking themselves if they are truly making a difference with their lives in regard to work. After all, in the western world, work is such a big part of one’s life, you cannot help but wonder if there is any lasting impact. Read more

Related Links
- Weird Week In Review (Jan. 11)
- Weird Week In Review (Jan. 4)
- Weird Week In Review (Dec. 28)

Are You Content In A Job, Career, or Vocation?

By E. Brown

Did you know that many people use the words, job, career, and vocation synonymously? Are you one of them? These words are actually very distinct with distinct definitions.

The Dictionary says of these:

Job - A paid position, responsibility, or piece of work.

Career - Time spent in an occupation for a significant period of one’s life.

Vocation - A strong feeling of suitability for a particular career or a person’s main occupation.

When thinking about your work, how do you see yourself positioned? Many newbies to the workforce see themselves in particular jobs for the money. Yet studies have shown that after 5 to 10 years, money is not the prime motivator many thought it was. Many lack passion in what they do, but it pays the bills so they stick it out in an environment they dread returning to each Monday morning. Today, employees are asking themselves if they are truly making a difference with their lives in regard to work. After all, in the western world, work is such a big part of one’s life, you cannot help but wonder if there is any lasting impact. “Is this all there is?” many are asking.

So, how about you? Are you in a job, a career, or a vocation?

Dan Miller offers the following definitions as you think about your life and its purpose as related to work. Read on.

Job - A job is the most specific and immediate of the three terms. It has to do with one’s daily activities that produce income. The average job is 3.2 years in length, meaning the average person will have 14 to 16 different jobs in his/her working lifetime. Jobs will come and go….

Career - Career comes originally from the Latin word for “cart” and later from the Middle French word for “racetrack.” In other words, you can go real fast for a long time but never get anywhere. That is why in today’s work environment, even physicians, attorneys, CPAs, and engineers may choose to get off the expected track and choose another career. You can have different careers at different points in your life.

Vocation - Vocation is the most profound of the three, incorporating calling, purpose, mission, and destiny. This is the big picture many people never identify for themselves. It’s what you’re doing in life that makes a difference and builds meaning for you, which you can review in your later years to see the impact you’ve made on the world. Stephen Covey says that we all want “to live, to love, to learn, and to leave a legacy.” Our vocation will leave a legacy. The word vocation comes from the Latin vocare, which means “to call.” It suggests that you are listening for something that is calling out to you. Everyone has a vocation or calling. (48 Days To The Work You Love, pages 38-40)

Anyone can do a job. The question is, have you been listening for your vocation? Are you fulfilling a purpose beyond the weekly grind? Are you proud and excited about the legacy you are leaving?

These are not easy questions to answer. They will take some introspection but in the end you will find the time you took was worthwhile. You will approach work with exuberance.

You will have fun.

You will find yourself content.

Contentment is not a word used much anymore. Yet, isn’t that something we all want at the end of the day - contentment?

Go. Pursue your vocation and at the end of your life you will find contentment!

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Quotable Quote

There is not greater agony than bearing an untold story inside of you.

- Maya Angelou

Quotable Quote

I do not at all understand the mystery of grace — only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us.

- Anne Lamott 

Learn Faster Through Principles of Storytelling

Here is another creative way to creatively learn and retain information. Try it and have fun!

clipped from www.lifehack.org You may not think of it deliberately, but learning is very similar to storytelling. You need to give yourself vivid, memorable and emotionally descriptions of the information. When you learn with compelling metaphors, information seems to stick easily. Without metaphors, ideas are dry and slip through your ears without a second thought. Metaphors and Holistic Learning Holistic learning is based on the principle that learning works as a whole and not through rote memorization. When all of your ideas are connected together, it becomes far easier to remember them. The storyteller’s art of metaphor is crucial in holistic learning. How to Create Good MetaphorsComing up with metaphors isn’t as difficult as it sounds, but it requires that you drop your search for the perfect description and look for multiple, simplified images. Isolate a Characteristic. Vivid is Better. Use descriptive language to give your metaphor emotional impact. Quantity over Quality. Draw it Out. Get out pen and paper and start drawing concepts. The 10-Year Old Rule. Can you explain your metaphor to a ten-year old?

Weird Week In Review - Dec. 28

Your one stop to review all this weeks articles on WeirdGuy. Have fun!

Incredible Images Taken At The Perfect Angle (PICS)
Enjoy these creative photos taken at just the right angle. Then think about any issues, projects, or problems you have and try to look at them from a new creative angle. Read more…

“Peach” Open Movie Promotes Collaborative Creativity
Did you hear about Project Orange? How about the end result called Elephants Dream? Not many heard about the animated short movie from a collective of International artists. Now, another effort is in progress. Read more…

NextGen Passionately Pursuing Their Dreams
Are you passionate about what you do? Are you disciplined to “stay the course?” Here are six people under 30 years old pursuing their passions and it is paying off big! Read more…

Understanding The Differences Between A CLO and CIO
The differences are primarily at a strategic level. Certainly, while the CLO and CIO interact, there are three areas of significant distinction. Margaret Driscoll, in her book, Web-based Training, offers a very concise explanation of these three areas. Read more…

Quotable Quote - Calvin and Hobbes
My behavior is addictive functioning in a disease process of toxic co-dependency…. Read more…

Related Links
- Weird Week In Review (Dec. 14)
- Weird Week In Review (Dec. 21)

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Understanding The Differences Between A CLO and CIO

By E. Brown

Many Fortune 100 and 500 companies get the difference between a Chief Information Officer (CIO) and a Chief Learning Officer (CLO). However, many smaller companies that are now venturing into the waters on online learning seem to be confused. They seem to understand the need for a CIO or CTO, but when it comes to learning they feel that this position can be occupied by those very same high level positions.

The differences are primarily at a strategic level. Certainly, while the CLO and CIO interact, there are three areas of significant distinction. Margaret Driscoll, in her book, Web-based Training, offers a very concise explanation of these three areas:

1. People skills
2. Technical knowledge
3. Strategic picture

The role of the CIO is designed to provide enterprise-wide directions and business strategies for acquiring, using, and maintaining information technology.

The CLO is responsible for an organization’s overall learning and knowledge initiatives.

People Skills
CLO’s need to be consummate communicators. They often have to reckon with departments with competing needs as related to training. Often a CLO will find they have to communicate between technical, creative, human resource, and C-level personnel. As a liaison, of sorts, they need to know the unique language of each of these areas of discipline. Therefore, the CLO must have excellent people skills in order to reach consensus amongst differing groups.

Technical Knowledge
Unlike the CIO, the technical knowledge of a CLO is the ability to stay abreast of trends within the learning marketplace. In this rapidly changing environment, a CLO must monitor and evaluate new technologies. Also, a fundamental knowledge of networks, databases, security issues, e-commerce, and system integration are crucial. Finally, their knowledge must take into consideration how training applications will impact the organization, training departments, users, and customers.

Strategic Picture
Of no less importance is the ability of the CLO to see the “big picture.” They must understand how training and knowledge management relate to the bottom line. Responsibilities include:

• Embedding learning in business processes
• Encouraging inter-departmental knowledge sharing
• Creating a culture of innovation
• Providing inside and outside customer training
• Creating informal learning events
• And more…

Do You Need A CLO?
As Driscoll says, the position usually comes about through either a cutting-edge organization creating the CLO position or someone within a company building a case for this post.

Most organizations would benefit from a chief learning officer as either a way to increase profitability or as a means of reducing costs. The emergence of the knowledge economy points to the value of information and knowledge as sources of wealth creation. A CLO can improve the speed at which innovation occurs and increase productivity and profitability. Another line of reasoning that is easier to demonstrate is that a CLO can reduce the costs associated with training. The proliferation of training within most companies suggest that there is room for coast savings by streamlining initiatives, eliminating redundancy, and taking advantage of economies of scale.
(Web-based Training, page 285)

If you are in a company that promotes training (and I hope you are) then I would encourage to look into the need for a CLO. Look at the corporate strategy and culture, crunch the numbers and you may find having a CLO is very profitable.

Tell me if you feel this article has been helpful for you. You can comment in the area below.

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Quotable Quote - Henry Bergson

Think like a man of action, act like a man of thought.

- Henry Bergson 

Are You A Net Promoter?

No, this is not about the Internet. It seems that “Customer No-Service” has gotten so bad, someone had to write a book.

I often tell companies that without customers they would not be in business. Yet, it never ceases to amaze me how many organizations are self-absorbed and do not think about who they are serving and how they are serving them.

clipped from www.netpromoter.com Net Promoter is a discipline by which companies profitably grow by focusing on their customers. A successful Net Promoter program includes 5 elements: 1) metrics proven to link to growth 2) leadership practices that instill customer focus, passion, and values 3) organizational strategies to ensure adoption 4) integration with core business processes 5) operational systems to support the initiative One simple question - Would you recommend us to a friend or colleague? - allows companies to track promoters and detractors and produces a clear measure of an organization’s performance through its customers’ eyes. More Promoters are customers who are so enthusiastic about a firm or brand that they not only increase their own purchases, but also refer their colleagues or friends. More Detractors are customers who feel so badly treated that they cut back on purchases, switch to the competition, and warn others to stay away from the company. More